The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 duo finish third and sixth, respectively, on opening day of Portuguese GP amidst reduced track time due to rainfall.

The opening day of the Portuguese Grand Prix was affected by varied conditions in Portimao, reducing the available working time for the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 talents. Despite the setbacks, Jaume Masia and Pedro Acosta were nevertheless able to set fast laps, finishing third and sixth, respectively, in the combined FP1 and FP2 standings. With these results, both riders made their way provisionally into Q2.

A wet surface – including puddles of water on several sectors – greeted the competitors in the morning, and thus the Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 pair decided to wait in the garage at the start of FP1. With six minutes remaining in the session, Acosta took to the track to complete four laps, one of which enabled him to place 15th with a time of 1:59.369. Masia opted against riding in the practice.

The track dried out for the start of a FP2, and both Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 riders led the way early on. However, in the final part of the session the rain returned, forcing the field to return to the pits. Before that, Masia had set a time of 1:50.042 on his ninth attempt out of a total of 13, giving him third place. Acosta finished sixth after stopping the clock at 1:50.309, completing 11 laps.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto3 duo will have a final Free Practice tomorrow morning, in which to complete their setups for the tussle for pole position. Q1 of the Portuguese GP will start at 12:35 PM local time, followed by Q2 at 1 PM.

Results (Combined practice times FP1-FP2)

1. Gabriel Rodrigo (Honda) 1:49:538
2. Andrea Migno (Honda) 1:50.014 +0.476
3. Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:50.042 +0.504
4. Sergio Garcia (GasGas) 1:50.161 +0.623
5. Romano Fenati (Husqvarna) 1:50.270 +0.732
6. Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:50.309 +0.771

5 JAUME MASIA

“It was a bit of a strange day. We decided not to go out in FP1, since the riders who were on the track were running 15 seconds slower than normal. We didn’t want to take risks. In FP2 I felt good from the start, but I lacked the track time to push a bit more, as it started to rain, and we were unable to draw any further conclusions. FP3 tomorrow will be like a second practice session for us. We will try to handle it in the best possible way and prepare well for Sunday.”

37 PEDRO ACOSTA

“In general, the day went quite well. In the morning we were only able to complete a couple of laps that helped us warm-up; we weren’t able to draw any conclusions from that practice. In FP2, we had to deal with some difficult track conditions, but we still managed to perform well. We secured a provisional place in tomorrow’s Q2 session, which is important ahead of Sunday’s race.”